Well, Carlos Beltran got his money. I always knew he would. A couple of years ago, I had a big e-mail argument with a Royals fan who felt absolutely sure that Beltran would never get the big money he and his agent were demanding.

“The days of those big contracts are over,” the fan wrote.

Yeah. Beltran will sign a seven-year deal today with the New York Mets for $119 million. That's $17 million per year until 2011. See, there's a classic line in “Citizen Kane” that goes, “Well, it's no trick making a lot of money, if all you want is to make a lot of money.”

Carlos Beltran was always going to get his cash.

For some reason, people did not want to believe that about Beltran. People wanted to believe he was about something more than money. I don't know why. Maybe it's because he's a nice, quiet guy. Maybe it's because he's fun to watch. Maybe it's because he's got a good smile. For weeks, you kept hearing reports that he really wanted to go back to Houston because he really liked it there, liked the fans, liked the town, liked his teammates, whatever.

He may have liked the fans, town, teammates and all that. In fact, I'm sure he did.

But there was no way Carlos Beltran was not going to get his money.

All of it.

That's not a knock on the guy. Not at all. Hey, this is America. You can take the highest-paying job. You can sell to the highest bidder. Go ahead. I'm just not sure why people expected anything else from Beltran. He never hid his priorities. He did not, as so many ballplayers do at contract time, tell tales about how he would play the game for free and how he would love to play with one team his whole life and all that stuff. No, Beltran was pretty up front about his goals in life. When asked whether he would consider taking less money to stay in Kansas City, Beltran scoffed.

“Would you?” he asked.

When asked whether he would be willing to play in New York, he praised George Steinbrenner. For you kids at home, here's a tip: When a ballplayer willingly praises George Steinbrenner, that's a pretty good clue that he would like to get paid.

More than anything, Beltran had Scott Boras as his agent. You don't hire Scott Boras to find you a nice town with nice people. For that, you call a travel agent. No, you hire Scott Boras to get you moolah, cashola, greenbacks. That's the only reason.

You don't hire a shark unless you want blood.

Beltran wanted blood. He wanted the very top dollar he could get. People who know Beltran best understand this about him. You heard people around town saying the Royals should sign him. Please. The Royals never had a chance. Beltran was always going to become a free agent. He was always going to see what he could get on the open market.

See, in baseball, money means more than money. It means respect. It means esteem. Money is a way to keep score. Everybody's making huge dollars — shoot, Derek Lowe will be getting $9 million per year — but only a chosen few make $16 million, $17 million, $18 million. Those are numbers for the superstars.

Those salaries are only for the best of the best.

Beltran has always wanted to be thought of in that class. I think he resented playing in Kansas City, away from the spotlight, away from the praise. He scored runs, drove in runs, hit home runs, he was almost impossible to throw out stealing, he chased down fly balls all over the park. Nobody seemed to notice.

So when he was traded to Houston and made his first playoffs, he made sure everyone noticed. He was as locked in as any player in playoff history. In 12 games, he hit .435, smashed eight home runs, stole six bases and scored 21 runs. Nobody had ever seen anything quite like it. Nobody had ever seen a player quite like him.

And he was going to cash in. For a while, nobody seemed willing to pay his price. The Yankees dropped out of the bidding. Anaheim, the Chicago Cubs, Los Angeles — none of those teams wanted to play at this poker table.

Astros management wanted Beltran badly and probably overextended. You kept hearing the rumors than Beltran really wanted to stay in Houston, but I never bought it. He wanted the BIG money, not Houston's best offer. He wanted the splash. And this is where Boras comes in. Lots of agents know the market. But what Boras does better than anyone is create the market. Like him or not, Boras is a talented man. He pressures. He coaxes. He manipulates. He plays teams against each other. He convinces everyone that they cannot possibly live without his player.

The Mets came through. Seven years. One-hundred nineteen million. True, Carlos Beltran will now play for the other New York team. He will play in a lousy stadium by an airport. He will play for fans who will boo him the first time he takes a called strike. He will play for a team that has been an absolute mess.

But he got his money.

And that's what this was about all along.

Demonpenz

01-11-2005, 02:35 AM

shea stadium is a beautiful place to play

Miles

01-11-2005, 02:37 AM

Its not like he compelty went for the money. The Mets are making a play to contend in the NL right? They did a great job at addressing their inept IF...

Demonpenz

01-11-2005, 02:38 AM

is mo vaughn back next year?

Demonpenz

01-11-2005, 02:38 AM

gobble and grienke are the next glavine and maddox

tk13

01-11-2005, 02:41 AM

Its not like he compelty went for the money. The Mets are making a play to contend in the NL right? They did a great job at addressing their inept IF...
Don't forget shelling out a huge contract for the remaining miles on Pedro Martinez's arm... but I guess they're interested in going after Carlos Delgado now to play 1B... we'll see, I think this has "train wreck" written all over it but maybe they'll prove me wrong. All these all-star hitters aren't going to mean squat when Smoltz, Hudson and the gang from Atlanta shut them down.... you think they'd be able to learn that from the team across the way over in Yankee Stadium.

Demonpenz

01-11-2005, 02:42 AM

what is atlanta going for 12ve in a row?

Ari Chi3fs

01-11-2005, 02:42 AM

gobble and grienke are the next glavine and maddox

so when are they going to Atlanta?

Demonpenz

01-11-2005, 02:43 AM

5000

Miles

01-11-2005, 02:43 AM

is mo vaughn back next year?

I dont think so. He was almost as good as an acquisition as Albert Bell was.

Miles

01-11-2005, 02:53 AM

Don't forget shelling out a huge contract for the remaining miles on Pedro Martinez's arm... but I guess they're interested in going after Carlos Delgado now to play 1B... we'll see, I think this has "train wreck" written all over it but maybe they'll prove me wrong. All these all-star hitters aren't going to mean squat when Smoltz, Hudson and the gang from Atlanta shut them down.... you think they'd be able to learn that from the team across the way over in Yankee Stadium.

Yep the Pedro signing is going to be either great or idiotic. Hard to believe that he has 4 seasons left on that arm. He definitly fits their profile of acquiting damaged goods but he looked pretty good last year in the playoffs.

Delgado is another potentially risky move for them. Yet another older former MVP that is likely declining in skill. Though at 32 who knows.

Like you said this has all the makings of a train wreck.

Dr. Facebook Fever

01-11-2005, 08:47 AM

shea stadium is a beautiful place to play
Especially if you're a cockroach.

beavis

01-11-2005, 09:12 AM

Don't forget shelling out a huge contract for the remaining miles on Pedro Martinez's arm... but I guess they're interested in going after Carlos Delgado now to play 1B... we'll see, I think this has "train wreck" written all over it but maybe they'll prove me wrong. All these all-star hitters aren't going to mean squat when Smoltz, Hudson and the gang from Atlanta shut them down.... you think they'd be able to learn that from the team across the way over in Yankee Stadium.
I couldn't agree more. The Mets are the best team in baseball at spending $100 million on a steaming pile of crap.

I bet Beltran is playing somewhere else within 3 years.

KevB

01-11-2005, 09:33 AM

If Carlos thought it was no fun playing in KC, just wait. He'll again be playing on a poor team, but this time the team will have expectations...and the media will be 10X worse than in KC. I'll be rooting for him, but I won't feel sorry for him when it all goes to hell. He went for the money, but he was up front about it and I respect him for that. It insults fans' intelligence when some of these guys say otherwise.

KevB

01-11-2005, 09:34 AM

BTW, this is still the team that traded perhaps the best LH prospect in the game (Kazmir) for Victor freakin' Zambrano.

The Bad Guy

01-11-2005, 10:00 AM

If Carlos thought it was no fun playing in KC, just wait. He'll again be playing on a poor team, but this time the team will have expectations...and the media will be 10X worse than in KC. I'll be rooting for him, but I won't feel sorry for him when it all goes to hell. He went for the money, but he was up front about it and I respect him for that. It insults fans' intelligence when some of these guys say otherwise.

I fail to see how the Mets are going to be a poor team.

They had a ton of injuries last year and some holes at the 3 spot in the order and an ace.

For all of you thought that Beltran going to Shea would be a tough place to hit, Pedro pitching at Shea could also make him a lot better than he was last year.

Martinez and Beltran are hardly Mo Vaughn and Robbie Alomar - it's not even a comparison.

Adding 2 of the best FAs out there can't do much but improve the team when you consider that Wright will be more comfortable at 3rd.

If they got Delgado, it would be gross. Yeah, he's 32. But he's durable and after missing some games last year, he still hit 32 HRs.

I'm a happy Mets fan. Yeah they overpaid, but so what they had to.

The Bad Guy

01-11-2005, 10:01 AM

BTW, this is still the team that traded perhaps the best LH prospect in the game (Kazmir) for Victor freakin' Zambrano.

That's why Duquette is no longer the GM.

beavis

01-11-2005, 10:11 AM

I fail to see how the Mets are going to be a poor team.

They had a ton of injuries last year and some holes at the 3 spot in the order and an ace.

For all of you thought that Beltran going to Shea would be a tough place to hit, Pedro pitching at Shea could also make him a lot better than he was last year.

Martinez and Beltran are hardly Mo Vaughn and Robbie Alomar - it's not even a comparison.

Adding 2 of the best FAs out there can't do much but improve the team when you consider that Wright will be more comfortable at 3rd.

If they got Delgado, it would be gross. Yeah, he's 32. But he's durable and after missing some games last year, he still hit 32 HRs.

I'm a happy Mets fan. Yeah they overpaid, but so what they had to.
I don't think they have a lot past Beltran. Pedro, Glavine, Piazza are all on the downward side of their careers, and all real question marks to be healthy even half the season.

Cochise

01-11-2005, 10:19 AM

You heard people around town saying the Royals should sign him. Please. The Royals never had a chance. Beltran was always going to become a free agent. He was always going to see what he could get on the open market.

This is absolutely false, kingpriest told me it a million times. The royals were just being cheap and don't want to win.

The Bad Guy

01-11-2005, 10:22 AM

I don't think they have a lot past Beltran. Pedro, Glavine, Piazza are all on the downward side of their careers, and all real question marks to be healthy even half the season.

Glavine is still a solid pitcher who will benefit from some run support. He had a losing record in large part last year because they couldn't score runs for him in the first half.

Pedro didn't miss a start last year and pitching against weaker lineups will help him.

The Mets have some top young talent in David Wright and an often-injured Jose Reyes. Cameron will be moving to right, yeah he strikes out a lot but he had 30 HRs last year and will be batting out of the 8 hole.

As a Mets fan, it's hard not to be excited over adding Beltran and Pedro.

KevB

01-11-2005, 11:10 AM

Pedro, Piazza, Floyd and Reyes are all injury prone. You're building a rotation with Pedro, Glavine (who had a nice season, but what's left in the tank at 38), an overpaid Benson and Victor Zambrano. That's ugly (not Royals ugly, but contender ugly). Wright is great, but Piazza is faltering, Reyes needs new hammys, Floyd has been on the market for 2 years and Matsui was a disappointment. I'm not so sure that Looper is battle tested at the back of the pen either, but that can be argued.

I think you've clearly improved, just with the addition of Beltran. Pedro is a big ? IMO. IF all of the "ifs" turn into positives, the Mets can contend. That's a lot of "ifs" though.

ENDelt260

01-11-2005, 11:13 AM

http://newyork.mets.mlb.com/images/2005/01/10/IcVnuxAA.jpg

beavis

01-11-2005, 11:18 AM

http://newyork.mets.mlb.com/images/2005/01/10/IcVnuxAA.jpg
:Lin:

Deberg_1990

01-11-2005, 11:41 AM

Hard to believe that a guy who only hit .267 gets that much money! Carlos definately picked the right time (playoffs) to hit his peak.

HemiEd

01-11-2005, 11:57 AM

Most accurate article that I have ever read of his

The Bad Guy

01-11-2005, 12:03 PM

Pedro, Piazza, Floyd and Reyes are all injury prone. You're building a rotation with Pedro, Glavine (who had a nice season, but what's left in the tank at 38), an overpaid Benson and Victor Zambrano. That's ugly (not Royals ugly, but contender ugly). Wright is great, but Piazza is faltering, Reyes needs new hammys, Floyd has been on the market for 2 years and Matsui was a disappointment. I'm not so sure that Looper is battle tested at the back of the pen either, but that can be argued.

I think you've clearly improved, just with the addition of Beltran. Pedro is a big ? IMO. IF all of the "ifs" turn into positives, the Mets can contend. That's a lot of "ifs" though.

Pedro was still 17-9 last year on a down year. I wouldn't call him injury prone, he does have some wear and tear but he's not injury prone.
As I said, pitching against NL lineups and at Shea will really help him.
I'm not expecting a miracle, but an 18-8, 17-7 season is definitely reachable.

Reyes has torn up winter ball, so I'm hopeful that the new training program and advisory staff on the Mets can straighten him out.

Piazza is injury prone, but I would be amazed if Floyd is there on opening day.

If the Mets get Delgado - they can definitely contend. Having Reyes, Matsui, Beltran, Delgado, Piazza, Wright (LF?), and Cameron is a very good lineup. 3 switch hitters to open, lefty in the 4 hole, and 3 of 4 rightys to finish it out.

Again, I'm realistic that things have to fall into place. But as a Mets fan who is sick of the Yankees stealing the headlines, I'm very happy with Beltran and Martinez if for anything it gives me reason to be excited for baseball again.

KevB

01-11-2005, 12:46 PM

Yes, it's a good lineup. But pitching wins games, and the Mets don't have enough. It will definitely be a fun team to watch, though. If Reyes and Piazza stay healthy, there will be a lot of runs scored on that team. Like I said, I think they're definitely better, but they spent more money to get there so they should be better.

The Bad Guy

01-11-2005, 01:12 PM

Yes, it's a good lineup. But pitching wins games, and the Mets don't have enough. It will definitely be a fun team to watch, though. If Reyes and Piazza stay healthy, there will be a lot of runs scored on that team. Like I said, I think they're definitely better, but they spent more money to get there so they should be better.

I disagree about the pitching. I think the Mets had the 2nd lowest era in the national league last year. I'm not 100% on that, but I heard it somewhere.

I don't like Benson at all, but I like Zambrano. Peterson is a pretty good pitching coach and I think he might be able to help Benson.

Pedro, Glavine, Benson, Zam and Traschel isn't bad. It's not great, but they can win with that starting 5.

The Braves are bringing Smoltz back after 4 years in the pen. I don't know how that will work out. Hudson is awesome but Hampton sucks and Thomson isn't anything great either.

siberian khatru

01-11-2005, 01:34 PM

I disagree about the pitching. I think the Mets had the 2nd lowest era in the national league last year. I'm not 100% on that, but I heard it somewhere.

FTR, the Mets were 7th in ERA last year.

I've been down on Pedro, because I think his arm is hanging by a thread. You watch him pitch, and he throws lots more breaking stuff these days; he gets by more on guile than pure stuff. But he's still effective. He just needs to hold together.

One note of optimism for Mets fans: One-fourth of Pedro's starts last year were against two teams that kicked his ass -- the Yankees and the Orioles. He's leaving them behind for a league that hasn't seen him in several years, and he'll be facing pitchers at the plate. And he'll be in a pitcher's park. I could see him going 17-8 with an ERA around 3.00. I could also see him going on the DL for two months or more.

HolmeZz

01-11-2005, 01:55 PM

Aside from the Cubs, who has a rotation in the NL as deep as the Mets? Nobody. So I'm not going to worry about whether our pitching can hold up. It's good enough to get them into the playoffs.

I'm not completely sold on our offense. Reyes is injury prone, but when he's healthy he can get it done. He's a great fielder and a terror on the basepaths.

Kaz Matsui was a disappointment last season, but really only as a fielder. His offensive game stepped up in the second half of last year. I'd attribute that to him getting more comfortable with the league. He's going to be moving to 2nd Base for this season, so his defense should improve.

I don't like having Piazza behind the plate. He's going to get run on so much it's not going to be funny. Besides that, he struggled at the plate in the 2nd half of last season. If he can get back to old Piazza form, I'll be able to deal with his defense.

IMO Wright is a budding star at 3rd. He didn't even play half a season last year and tallied 14 homers, about 40 RBIs, and batted around .300. He was pretty good defensively at 3rd for his first year, but he should still improve.

First Base is a hole. I don't want to start the season with Jason Phillips there. He can't hit and he's not anything special defensively. Plus, I'd rather not have my backup catcher have to start. Hopefully we'll pull a few strings and get Delgado. He'd fill that hole, and give us a big left-handed bat in the middle of the lineup.

I'd like to see us get rid of Floyd. He's injury prone and very inconsistent at the plate. He's not a great fielder either. I've heard talks of us trading him for Sosa, where we'd have to pick up more of the contract. I'd actually be for that, eventhough I don't like Sosa one bit.

Beltran should shine in center. I've got no worries about him.

Cameron will be moved to right. I like Mike. He usually plays Gold Glove caliber D and has some pop in the bat. He did struggle to hit for average last season though. Hopefully that was a fluke.

As a Met fan, I'm truly not worried about the Braves. Hudson's shown he can be injury prone and I'm going to wait to see how an aging Smoltz adjusts to being a starter again. They lost Russ Ortiz and J.D. Drew, as well as Charles Thomas this off-season, so they're going to end up starting 2 no-names in the corner outfield spots. I think they'll struggle to find the right mix, early on atleast.

ENDelt260

01-11-2005, 01:56 PM

How many f*cking Met fans are on this board? Up until today, I thought Russ was the only one afflicted.

HolmeZz

01-11-2005, 01:58 PM

Hopefully it'll no longer be an embarrassment to be a Met fan. ;)

tk13

01-11-2005, 02:06 PM

As a Met fan, I'm truly not worried about the Braves. Hudson's shown he can be injury prone and I'm going to wait to see how an aging Smoltz adjusts to being a starter again. They lost Russ Ortiz and J.D. Drew, as well as Charles Thomas this off-season, so they're going to end up starting 2 no-names in the corner outfield spots. I think they'll struggle to find the right mix, early on atleast.

After what they did last year, I'm just gonna pick the Braves every year until they lose... I guess I've learned never to doubt John Schuerholz, he's a great GM.

The Bad Guy

01-11-2005, 02:18 PM

How many f*cking Met fans are on this board? Up until today, I thought Russ was the only one afflicted.

I've been one since I was real young. I think NaptownChief is a Mets fan too.

HolmeZz

01-11-2005, 02:30 PM

http://amazinz.com/images/featurepic.jpg

beavis

01-11-2005, 02:37 PM

After what they did last year, I'm just gonna pick the Braves every year until they lose... I guess I've learned never to doubt John Schuerholz, he's a great GM.
No joke. Dude wins where ever he's at.

It's good to know HolmeZz isn't afraid of them though.

Coach

01-11-2005, 02:42 PM

How many f*cking Met fans are on this board? Up until today, I thought Russ was the only one afflicted.

I'm sure there are a few around here. They just didn't have much to cheer about because of their old GM was a terrible GM.

Congrats on getting one of the biggest prize, Met fans.

HolmeZz

01-11-2005, 02:47 PM

No joke. Dude wins where ever he's at.

It's good to know HolmeZz isn't afraid of them though.

They could still easily find a way to win the division. I just don't see any part of their team currently that scares me. Last year I could've pointed to Smoltz in the bullpen, but I can't say that this year.

homey

01-11-2005, 02:47 PM

Aside from the Cubs, who has a rotation in the NL as deep as the Mets?

That's easy. The Cards and Braves.

I'm waiting to see how Rick Peterson can influence Zambrano. He said he could fix him in 10 minutes and I remember Victor pitching quite well after he was dealt to the Mets. They he got hurt. The Mets' rotation is solid, but their bullpen seems like the bigest issue to me.

Hard to believe that a guy who only hit .267 gets that much money!

Exactly, the man makes more money than Pujols. That's crazy.

HolmeZz

01-11-2005, 02:54 PM

That's easy. The Cards and Braves.

I'm waiting to see how Rick Peterson can influence Zambrano. He said he could fix him in 10 minutes and I remember Victor pitching quite well after he was dealt to the Mets. They he got hurt. The Mets' rotation is solid, but their bullpen seems like the bigest issue to me.

Bullpen is their biggest problem.

Hudson, Smoltz, Thompson, Hampton and Horacio Ramirez isn't better than Pedro, Glavine, Benson, Zambrano, and Trachsel IMO. You could make an argument for St. Louis, but I want to see how Carpenter comes back from his injury and whether or not Matt Morris can be the Matt Morris of old. If both those go well, then yeah, they very well could be better than the Mets rotation. All I was trying to get across was that the notion that the Mets don't have a good enough rotation to win is pretty stupid, especially when you look at the rest of the NL.

HolmeZz

01-11-2005, 02:57 PM

Exactly, the man makes more money than Pujols. That's crazy.

His price was jacked up because of the market. He was widely considered the best player available and it's hard to pass up a young switch hitting 5-tool centerfielder with the speed and power he's got. Plus, he's coming off one of the greatest individual post-season performances I can remember. Most years he wouldn't have made this kind of money. He benefitted from slim pickings.

Hudson, Smoltz, Thompson, Hampton and Horacio Ramirez isn't better than Pedro, Glavine, Benson, Zambrano, and Trachsel IMO. You could make an argument for St. Louis, but I want to see how Carpenter comes back from his injury and whether or not Matt Morris can be the Matt Morris of old. If both those go well, then yeah, they very well could be better than the Mets rotation. All I was trying to get across was that the notion that the Mets don't have a good enough rotation to win is pretty stupid, especially when you look at the rest of the NL.

Morris has some type of injury I believe.

Mulder is a good pitcher, but Carpenter isn't better than Glavine.

KevB

01-11-2005, 03:59 PM

All I was trying to get across was that the notion that the Mets don't have a good enough rotation to win is pretty stupid, especially when you look at the rest of the NL.

Pedro's arm could fall off tomorrow, Zambrano's lack of control, Glavine's age, and Benson and Trachsel's mediocrity all cast doubt on the rotation. As it relates to the rest of the NL, I'd rather have the Cards/Braves/Marlins/Cubs/Pads. The Dodgers in that park will probably be decent, and I think the Pirates could be sneaky good this year.

So, should the Mets compete with their rotation? Sure. But I don't think they're in the top 5 rotations in the National League when it's all said and done. Having said that, Peterson is a very good pitching coach, so he could really make a difference.

Sure-Oz

01-11-2005, 04:14 PM

Go Royals!!! MLB's farm system!

Pitt Gorilla

01-11-2005, 04:54 PM

The Royals could have technically afforded him; if they found someone DUMB enough to take Sweeney's mistake of a contract off of our hands, Beltran is actually making less than he and Mike made last year (17 vs. 20 million) and Pickering would then have a spot on the roster (currently, he doesn't). Of course, we wouldn't have given him 7 years and Mike will come off the books in a few years AND we would have had to forfeit a high pick, or something...

beavis

01-11-2005, 04:58 PM

The Royals could have technically afforded him; if they found someone DUMB enough to take Sweeney's mistake of a contract off of our hands, Beltran is actually making less than he and Mike made last year (17 vs. 20 million) and Pickering would then have a spot on the roster (currently, he doesn't). Of course, we wouldn't have given him 7 years and Mike will come off the books in a few years AND we would have had to forfeit a high pick, or something...
Maybe, but there is no way in hell he was ever going to sign here without at the very least becoming a free agent first. If we had held on to him, everyone would be slamming Allard right now for not getting anything of value out of him while he could.

Ari Chi3fs

01-11-2005, 05:46 PM

Im really saddened.

DaWolf

01-12-2005, 07:50 AM

i've always liked the Mets if for nothing else than to spite the Yankees. Best of luck to Carlos. Now that he has his money we'll see how hard he's going to work at becoming a great player. To paraphrase George Brett, Carlos is a very very very good ballplayer, but what's wrong with putting in the extra work to try and become a very very very great player? He's got the tools, lets see if he can apply it over a full season and the rest of his career...

Sure-Oz

01-12-2005, 10:04 AM

I hope the Mets get Delgado too, maybe take some glimmer away from the spankees and actuall contend.